


What Matt Knows

by whitchry9



Category: Daredevil (TV)
Genre: 5+1 Things, Ableism, Canon-Typical Violence, Confessions, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Gen, M/M, Relationship(s), Repairing Friendships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-10
Updated: 2016-09-10
Packaged: 2018-08-14 04:01:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,572
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7997815
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whitchry9/pseuds/whitchry9
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Things Matt knows, through his senses or otherwise, and one he never let himself dream about.</p>
            </blockquote>





	What Matt Knows

**Author's Note:**

> For this prompt: http://daredevilkink.dreamwidth.org/6237.html?thread=10834013#cmt10834013
> 
> I really loved the whole thing, and yet it took me more than a year to actually write anything for it. 
> 
>  
> 
> In terms of timeline, this is between the first and second season.

 

 

He's not sure what he's supposed to tell Foggy and what he's not.

It is worse that he can hear things and doesn't mention them? Or that he hears things Foggy doesn't want him to hear and mentions them? Is it better to pretend he doesn't hear these things or to admit he does? Foggy says he wants to know, but every time Matt tells him, he can hear he doesn't. Everyone thinks they want to know, but the truth is, no one really does.

What Matt knows is they're both walking a tightrope but at this point he thinks they might be falling.

 

He thinks it would be better to forever stay in the limbo of free fall than to ever hit the ground and know for sure.

(Some things are better not to know.)

 

* * *

one

* * *

 

“She likes you, you know,” Matt tells Foggy. They're comfortably buzzed and at a bar that's not Josie's. A woman came up to Foggy and ordered a drink, flirted while she waited for it, and then left. Foggy had flirted back, but let her go.

“You think?” Foggy asks him.

“I know,” he replies.

He can tell Foggy is looking at him, wondering how he knows. Before, he wouldn't have given it a second thought, just assumed it was one of those things that Matt just knew, like he knew when a woman was hot. But now that Foggy knows, he assumes the worst, that Matt listened to her heart or read her mind or whatever Foggy thinks he does now.

This time, he didn't. He knows flirting when he hears it, and why not? Any girl would be lucky to have Foggy. He's a great guy.

 

Foggy orders them shots instead of following up with her, and they both go home alone.

Matt doesn't mind. He hopes Foggy doesn't either.

 

* * *

two

* * *

 

“He's lying,” Matt says as soon as their potential client is out the door. Markus Rolando claims he didn't forge paperwork that relieved him of child support payments that robbed his ex-wife of thousands of dollars of essential money she needed to support their daughter.

“How do you know?” Karen asks, popping up behind them. “I mean, I believe you, because from what little I heard, he's a huge dick, but how can you be sure?”

“Matt's really good at telling when people are lying,” Foggy says, but it's strained.

“Like a human lie detector?” Karen asks. “That would explain how he knew I was telling the truth. I guess that's really helpful for your field, huh?”

“Proving it is harder,” Matt mutters. “Especially in court.”

“Eh, we won't be defending him though,” Foggy decides. “So it's not going to be an issue for us.”

Matt raises an eyebrow.

“We only defend innocent people. Right Karen?” he elbows her in the ribs. Karen squeals and jumps.

“Foggy,” she protests, giggling.

 

They don't take the client. Matt crosses his fingers and hopes Karen doesn't bring it up again.

 

* * *

three

* * *

 

“I'm pretty sure you and Brett are classified as friends,” Matt tells Foggy, right after Brett assured him they weren't and hung up. Considering Brett had called them about a potential case that he was offering to them before anyone else could snatch it up, it wasn't much of a leap.

“Your super hearing tell you that?” Foggy asks. He's not expecting an answer, and Matt doesn't tell him that he can't hear heartbeats over a phone, just like he can't hear whether people on tv are lying or not, making recorded witness statements a bitch to decipher.

“He just gave us first crack at a case involving vigilantism. He clearly likes us well enough. Probably even friend level,” Matt tells him instead.

Foggy snorts. “Yeah, but it's more likely that no one else wants this case and he's pawning it off on us instead of waiting for a public defender. Come on; let's go see what Miss Jones has done that warrants a call to us.”

 

Foggy doesn't lead him when they leave their office. Matt doesn't point it out.

 

* * *

four

* * *

 

“Jesus, there is so much reading to do,” Foggy sighs, and sets his face in his hands. It's already after midnight and they have court in the morning. It's not that they haven't been doing their research, it's just that there's _so much of it._

They've each only read half of what they should have, and Matt thinks that Foggy is considering calling it quits, and probably would have hours ago if it wasn't for the fact that this client is A, paying them, and B, completely innocent of all charges.

To top it off, it makes things more complicated because Matt needs digital copies that can either by read by his screenreader or converted for his braille display. So despite his ability to read at the same rate or faster than Foggy, and listen at an even higher rate, he's only read about a third of what Foggy has, simply because it's time consuming to get it accessible.

 

Matt feels guilty about it, obviously. This case is worse than most, since a lot of the documents are old and handwritten. He's been doing what he can to help Foggy, looking for comparable cases for precedents, but the fact remains that Matt just can't do as much of it.

 

Foggy would never say he's disappointed or frustrated or angry, but Matt can tell he is. It's not even a voluntary thing, because Foggy understands his limitations, knows that there are some things that Matt just can't do. But Matt also wonders if, since Foggy found out about his senses, is harbouring some resentment that Matt can't use them for things like this. Or maybe a misplaced belief that he can, and just isn't.

 

Based on the way he huffs before getting back to it and asking Matt to look for sentencing for GBH, Matt isn't sure, but suspects he already knows.

 

He thinks he'll clear things up with Foggy, but another time, when they're not both sleep deprived and on edge from the stress of the case.

 

(After they win, Matt asks him over drinks, and Foggy denies it of course. He's not lying. But Matt knows that sometimes ableism isn't conscious, and that even people with the best intentions can harbour beliefs that they don't want to have.)

 

* * *

five

* * *

 

Matt's picking up drinks for him and Foggy one night when a woman sidles up to him and introduces herself as Mary. Matt's surprised at how hard she flirts, dragging a hand down his arm and offering to buy him a drink. Her heartbeat is constantly galloping, but doesn't seem to hint at a lie anywhere, and yet…

 

Everything about her makes everything in Matt scream that she is _wrong,_ that there is more to her than anyone can understand, that her offer of drinks is not simply that, that her flirting is more than just teasing him with her claws and more of sinking them in and dragging him off.

 

Kind of what Elektra was like in college, but dialed up a hundred times.

And Matt knows where that goes, knows where girls like that get him, standing over his father's killer with bloody fists, and he wants no part of that at all, thank you.

 

He ducks his head and mutters an excuse and makes his way back to Foggy, who seems bewildered at the turn of events.

 

“Dude, what's up with that?” he asks, but Matt only shakes his head and mumbles something about not feeling well and drags Foggy out by his shirt sleeve.

Foggy doesn't understand why Matt doesn't want to stay, hang out with the woman who seems so interested in him.

Matt just shakes his head. “There's something off about her Foggy,” he insists.

He's sure Foggy rolls his eyes. “Right, because you're so good at reading women. Is there something you know that you're not sharing?”

“No, she just… I can't explain it Foggy.”

Foggy doesn't seem happy with the explanation, but doesn't keep pushing it. They go to Josie's instead.

 

The ominous feeling follows him home and haunts his dreams that night.

 

A few weeks later, when she introduces herself as Typhoid Mary and promptly tries to kill him, things click. She has the same galloping heartbeat with no hints of lying anywhere as she threatens his life.

He doesn't mention it to Foggy though. He hates it when he's right out of pure instinct, and there was no way Foggy would even believe that.

 

* * *

and one

* * *

 

It comes to a head one night. Matt doesn't even remember what they were discussing, but somehow it gets around to him knowing something that Foggy doesn't, and Foggy jumps to the conclusion that he knows it because of his hearing, that he listened to someone's heart and now knows everything about them.

 

“That's not… That's not how I know this,” Matt sighs finally, and that's what does it.

“Well, you clearly know so much, don't you Matt?” Foggy snaps.

Matt is tired and doesn't want to have this argument, but he also can't let this moment pass by without telling Foggy what he really knows.

“I know you hate that I can tell when you're lying,” he says quietly.

“How do you know that? You listen to my heart? You listen to my breathing? You listen to conversations I have with myself, mutterings under my breath, the messages I type out when I text Claire? Just how do you know these things Matt?”

“You told me. You told me that it's creepy and invasive, and I swear Foggy, I have tried to not do it, but I can't stop it. It's not something I can turn off. I can't just not listen to your heart. You know how long I've listened to your heart beat? I fell asleep to it nearly every night in law school. I know how it stutters when Marci flirts with you, how it speeds it when you get close to a closing argument that you know will win a case. I know how it beats, every tick of it. I know how it sounds when you're lying, when you're telling the truth, when you're telling a joke. I know how it beats in court, I know how it beats when you're flirting, I know how it beats when we talk about our future and you joke about how you'll be stuck with me until we're old and grey and shaking our canes and reminiscing about the good old days. I know that you hate that I'm telling you this, and I know that, despite not listening to anything besides my own words, because I know just how much you hate when I do.”

Foggy doesn't say anything, so Matt keeps going. “I know that when you tell me it sounds like we're getting married, you're joking,” Matt says, more softly, all his anger gone. “When people think we're partners like that, you tell them we're not, and don't even sound disappointed. I know when you tell me you love me, you don't mean it like that. I know these things Foggy. I know all of them without ever having to listen to your heart. Because I know you.”

Foggy sputters. “Of course I don't mean those things! I'm not delusional! How could I, of all people, be in love with you? How could you think that I'd love you, or that… that you'd love me back, of all things. It's ridiculous, that's what it is.”

Matt's heart nearly stops as Foggy's picks up.

“You're lying,” he breathes.

Foggy stops waving his arms around and freezes. “No I'm not.”

“You are. You're lying. I never… I never gave it any thought before, but… Foggy. You're lying.”

Foggy doesn't say anything, doesn't move, doesn't even breathe.

“You're _lying,_ Foggy,” Matt says again, breathless.

He beams. “You're lying,” he yells. “You're lying. God, Foggy Nelson, I have loved you for so long, and you are lying.”

“What?” Foggy squeaks.

“You're lying!” Matt yells again.

“Of course I am you idiot. Not that, the other thing,” he snaps. “You… love me?”

“Of course,” Matt breathes. “I have loved you for so long.”

“Not as long as I have,” Foggy protests.

“Try me,” Matt dares, moving closer. “I have loved you since you first talked about starting a law firm with me. What was it… the second week of law school?”

“Oh Matthew Murdock. I have loved you since you didn't run away screaming when we met.”

“Fine,” Matt relents. “But you haven't loved me as hard as I loved you.”

“Oh yeah?” Foggy retorts.

“I nearly failed torts because you and Marci wouldn't stop flirting during the entire class.”

“I followed you from L&Z because you made that stupid face.”

“I don't argue when you give Bess cigars, aka, bribing a police officer for cases.”

“I stole a box of bagels because we started a firm together.”

Matt makes a face. “That one doesn't count twice.”

“I wasn't finished. I still have one of them in my freezer as a memento.”

Matt makes a face, but for a different reason. “Gross.”

“Some might call it love,” Foggy shoots back.

Matt rolls his eyes. “I hate musicals, but I know all the lines to Wicked because we shared an office for months and I let you play it.”

“My mother thinks we've been dating since the first Christmas I brought you home. Every time I call her she asks if we're getting married soon.”

“My priest thinks we're dating.”

“Marci thinks we're dating.”

“Everything I have done as Daredevil is to make this city safe for you. The night of the explosion, when I found out you were hurt, and realized I wasn't there for you when you needed me… I thought about quitting everything. Screw the consequences, because if I couldn't save you, there was no point saving this city.”

“That night was when Karen told me I should just tell you I loved you. I don't know how she figured it out so quickly when it took me years. God, I loved you from the start, but it took me so long to realize it.”

“Lying to you killed me a little more each day. I thought that by the time I told you, there would be nothing left of me.”

“Finding you bleeding on your floor scared at least a decade off me. If you were dead, I honestly think I would have died too.”

“I would never let that happen,” Matt says firmly. “I will never let that happen. I will never let anything happen to you. I can't. That's the truth.”

 

Foggy pauses. “I can't tell if you're lying. That's not fair. You can tell, but I can't.”

“Foggy, I will never lie to you again. And if you don't want me to, I will never listen to your heart again. It might kill me, but if that's what you want, I'll do it.”

Foggy doesn't say anything, just looks at him. Matt can't even tell what expression he has, and doesn't know if he's welcome to place his hands on his best friend's face to find out.

 

“Matt,” Foggy says seriously.

“Yes?”

“I'm going to kiss you.”

He's not lying. Matt doesn't even need his senses to tell.

“Not if I kiss you first,” he retorts.

 

It's a tie.

 

 


End file.
